Fish Are Fleeing Our Waters

There is no more important industry in a lot of places up in these parts than the commercial fishing industry. And, thanks to the invaluable Beth Daley of the Boston Globe, we discover today that the many of the species of fish vital to that industry are fleeing the scene, probably because they have been fooled by the Great Climate Change Hoax. Suckers.

Warming waters and an evolving ocean ecosystem possibly related to man-made climate change are contributing to the anemic populations, not just decades of overfishing, government officials say. Researchers are just beginning to understand how the vast Gulf of Maine is responding to global warming and exactly what will happen to fragile fish populations. They acknowledge they don't know whether prized cod and flounder stocks will ever rebound - and if they don't, what species will take their place. "While we are not blaming fishermen, this is not good news,'' said John Bullard, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's regional chief. "We can control overfishing - it's hard but we can do it - but how do you control this?"

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The guys at NOAA are not the guys you really want to see throwing up their hands there.

NOAA research shows that about half of 36 fish stocks they analyzed in recent years, including cod, flounder, and lesser-known species, have been shifting northward or into deeper waters in the last four decades. While locally caught Atlantic cod are disappearing from restaurants and stores, other fish that thrive in warmer water, such as Atlantic croaker, could take their place. But it's unclear if fishermen will be able to make as much money from these species. The timing of spring plankton blooms - the foundation of the marine food web - may also be shifting, scientists say, coming earlier in the spring, as it did this year. Plankton changes, combined with rising ocean temperatures, could affect the success of young marine life because so many species time their spawning to the spring bloom.Fishermen, meanwhile, are also seeing profound changes, such as dramatic increases in skates and the voracious dogfish, a small shark that may be eating vast amounts of cod.

The immediate solution is to cut catch quotas, which is going to severely hurt the local fishermen, which is going to make them even angrier. Looking at this, you'd almost think we were all part of the same ecosystem, where damage to one part of it will severely impact all the others. But that's Gaia hypothesis crazy talk and you should not pay attention to it.